Associated Press – Moore County Edition

Apr

20

2022

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By Associated Press

South Carolina inmate picks firing squad over electric chair

Newsdeath penalty, electric chair, firing squad

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A South Carolina prisoner scheduled to be the first man executed in the state in more than a decade has decided to die by firing squad rather than in the electric chair later this month, according to court documents filed Friday. Richard Bernard Moore, 57, is the also first state prisoner to face the choice of execution methods after a law went into effect last year making electrocution the default and giving inmates the option to face three prison workers with rifles instead. Moore has spent more than two decades on death row after being convicted of…

Apr

20

2022

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By Associated Press

GOP states eye voting system upgrades

Government, News, StateGOP, upgrades, voting

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — For years, Tennessee Democratic Senate Minority Leader Jeff Yarbro’s call to require the state’s voting infrastructure to include a paper record of each ballot cast has been batted down in the Republican-dominated Legislature. But as the fallout around the 2020 presidential election — and some GOP voters’ distrust of voting machines — Tennessee Republican lawmakers who have held off are coming around on a paper-backed mandate. A similar scenario is playing out in some of the five other states -- most of which are Republican-led -- that do not currently have a voting system with a paper…

Apr

20

2022

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By Associated Press

Budd, McCrory still close in NC Senate campaign fundraising

Government, Newsfundraising, NC Senate, Pat McCrory, Ted Budd

RALEIGH — North Carolina Republican U.S. Senate candidates Ted Budd and Pat McCrory remained neck-and-neck with their campaigns’ own fundraising entering the final full month before the May 17 primary. Campaign finance reports for the first quarter show McCrory, the former governor, and current U.S. House member Budd collecting essentially the same level of contributions and other funds. But Budd is separately benefiting from a political action committee that has already spent several million dollars on ads and mailers praising Budd and attacking McCrory. A pro-McCrory super PAC is trailing. Budd also has received former President Donald Trump’s endorsement. Looking…

Apr

19

2022

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By Associated Press

Abortion ban after 15 weeks signed into law in Florida

Newsabortion, ban, Florida

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a 15-week abortion ban into law last week as the state joined a growing conservative push to restrict access to the procedure ahead of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that could roll back abortion rights in America. “This will represent the most significant protections for life that have been enacted in this state in a generation,” DeSantis said as he signed the bill at an evangelical church in the city of Kissimmee. Republicans nationwide have moved to place new restrictions on abortion after the U.S. Supreme Court signaled it would uphold a…

Jan

09

2022

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By Associated Press

New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has COVID

Government, Nation, NewsAOC, COVID

WASHINGTON, D.C. — New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has tested positive for COVID-19 and “is experiencing symptoms and recovering at home,” her office said in a statement Sunday evening. The Democratic congresswoman’s office said Ocasio-Cortez received a booster shot last fall. With the nation dealing with another surge of the virus since the emergence of the highly contagious omicron variant, numerous members of Congress have reported breakthrough cases despite being fully vaccinated and boosted.

Jan

09

2022

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By Associated Press

‘Full House’ star Bob Saget has died at 65 in Florida

NewsBob Saget

LOS ANGELES — Bob Saget, a comedian and actor known for his role as a widower raising a trio of daughters in the sitcom “Full House,” has died, according to authorities in Florida. He was 65. The Orange County, Florida, sheriff's office was called Sunday about an “unresponsive man” in a hotel room at the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando, according to a sheriff's statement on Twitter. “The man was identified as Robert Saget" and death was pronounced at the scene, the statement said, adding that detectives found “no signs of foul play or drug use in this case. A “#BobSaget" concluded…

Jan

08

2022

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By Associated Press

For celebrations, English fizz is on the rise

Featuresbubbly, celebration, champagne, english sparkling wine, sparkling wine

LONDON — English sparkling wine has been gaining prestige in recent years, with some experts comparing it to Champagne in taste and quality. Globally, the sector is still relatively small: IWSR Drinks Market Analysis reports that sparkling wine produced in the U.K. represents about 0.2% of total global sparkling wine volume. But sales are growing: U.K.-produced sparkling wine volume rose by almost 11% from 2015-2020, the report said. ”Maybe 10 years ago, there were only two or three wines which might have been known outside of the U.K. or certainly recognized by wine critics as well,” says Jonathan White, spokesman…

Jan

06

2022

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By Associated Press

New hi-tech photo brings Rembrandt’s ‘Night Watch’ up close

WorldAmsterdam, Night Watch, Rembrandt, Rijksmuseum

AMSTERDAM — Rembrandt van Rijn’s iconic and huge painting “The Night Watch” is now also a supersized museum photo delivered right to your laptop in unsurpassed detail. The Amsterdam Rijksmuseum on Monday put on its digital portal what it called “the most detailed photograph of any artwork” ready for assessment by scientists and art lovers alike. It is expected to draw widespread interest especially since the museum is closed because of coronavirus measures. The 717-gigapixel photo allows viewers to zoom in on Captain Frans Banninck Cocq and see how the 17th-century master put the tiniest of white dots in his…

Nov

01

2021

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By Associated Press

Redistricting debate begins in earnest at NC legislature

Government, News

RALEIGH — The North Carolina General Assembly is starting to debate some redistricting maps drawn by lawmakers for the state's legislative and congressional seats. Senate and House committees were scheduled to meet Monday to consider boundaries redrawn based on 2020 census figures. The Senate panel was likely to advance a Republican-penned map for the U.S. House delegation that redistricting experts estimate would give the GOP a good chance to win 10 of the state's 14 seats. And the House committee was slated Monday to take up a state House map that likely would help Republicans retain their majority in that…

Oct

29

2021

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By Associated Press

Youngkin’s school warnings intensify the GOP’s suburban push

Newssuburban, warning, Youngkin

ASHLAND, Va. — Glenn Youngkin wants voters in Virginia to hear an urgent message: Your children are in danger. In a speech in Northern Virginia’s suburbs last week, the Republican candidate for governor highlighted the murky case of a student who allegedly committed sex crimes in two area schools. He said the incidents, which have sparked community outrage, are the result of failed Democratic leadership. “What other tragedy awaits Virginia’s children?” Youngkin asked from the podium, flanked by a collection of parents and schoolchildren. On the eve of the Nov. 2 election, Youngkin’s message represents a new front in his…